UPDATE: Stifel Nicolaus Initiates Coverage on Diana Shipping with Hold Rating on Fair Valuation

In a report published Thursday, Stifel Nicolaus analyst Benjamin Nolan initiated coverage on

with a Hold rating. In the report, Stifel Nicolaus noted, “We are initiating coverage of Diana Shipping (DSX) with a Hold rating on the shares. Although Diana unquestionably has one of the most solid balance sheets in the dry bulk shipping peer group and, therefore, the capacity to acquire distressed assets, we believe the dry bulk shipping industry is still at least a year from a cyclical recovery. DSX shares are already trading in line with our $9.80 NAV value estimate and at a 2014E EV/EBITDA multiple of 14.6x. As a result, we believe they are fully valued and unlikely to move materially higher in the absence of a cyclical upswing in dry bulk shipping charter rates.” Diana Shipping closed on Wednesday at $10.01.